Northside Hospital Cherokee recently issued the following announcement.
A judge has extended an injunction that ensures thousands of Georgians will continue to receive health care from their current physicians and preferred hospitals.
This most recent decision by the Superior Court of Fulton County enables Anthem members who seek care at Northside’s hospitals, clinics, and physician practices to remain fully covered and in-network through April 15, 2022.
In a court hearing on January 26, Anthem sought to end the 30-day injunction and initiate an immediate termination of health care coverage for Northside patients. Today, a judge denied Anthem’s request and granted the extension to Northside.
Other stakeholders in the Atlanta region – including Cherokee, Forsyth, and Gwinnett counties – provided support through their own court filings or letters of concern. Tens of thousands of their government employees and local teachers are Anthem members, and they would be adversely affected if a termination had occurred.
While the injunction extension keeps Northside’s Anthem patients in network, Northside and Anthem remain in negotiations as they try to work out new agreements.
Northside’s agreements with Anthem were not up for renewal and were not set to expire. Still, Anthem began a process that would separate hundreds of thousands of Georgians from their doctors and health care resources by unilaterally and without cause terminating the existing agreements.
In its original court filings in late 2021, Northside cited a Georgia law that went into effect July 1, 2021. House Bill 454 was approved by both houses of the Georgia General Assembly and signed by Gov. Brian Kemp. It prevents insurance companies from terminating health care providers during a public health emergency, such as COVID-19.
Northside has worked diligently to resolve this situation and is acutely aware of the stress and frustration of Anthem members and their families. Northside will continue its discussions with Anthem, with the intention of reaching an agreement that provides the best benefits to patients and their families.
If You Have Questions
We have resources available to you now at northside.com. We encourage you to visit Billing and Collections, where you will find guidance and many resources. You also can email customer.service@northside.com or call 404-851-6500.
To learn more about Northside Hospital’s Financial Assistance Program, you can download the Northside Hospital Financial Assistance Program Policy and Financial Assistance Application or you may contact our Financial Counseling offices to request that a copy of these documents be mailed to you. If you are an oncology patient, the Financial Assistance Application for Oncology can be found here.
Original source can be found here.
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